Anytime I run into a roadblock, I know Karen can help answer questions

When I started the course in 2017, I knew borderline nothing about fragrance, other than the fact that I was hugely interested by it. I learned a lot about botanical ingredients during the course, since that's the starting point of getting familiar with aroma chemicals. It was a great jumping off point as I slowly began to expand my knowledge of and experimentation with more manmade ingredients. I launched my first scent in late 2017 and am continuing to expand the product line as I learn more about what my clients do (and don't) like. Anytime I run into a roadblock, I know Karen and the Facebook group can help answer questions.

meet karen

I love sharing what I know and have the unique background of having worked both inside the fragrance industry as well as inside the natural skincare industry since 1990.

I have developed and delivered training for companies as well as my own students and built 2 profitable business both on and offline. I have no affiliation with any company and I will always be 100% transparent and truthful – no fluff guaranteed!

Over the years I’ve trained a huge variety of people from all walks of life in fragrance creation. From buyers for huge brands, fragrance professionals, retail staff, bloggers, journalists, small business owners, aromatherapists, herbalists, fashion designers, artists, accountants, and the odd neuroscientist – most were complete newbies to perfumery.

Here are some of the most common questions I get asked from people who want to make perfume and are just getting started. Making perfume takes a bit of study and practice but with a bit of guidance you can create your own bespoke fragrance.

01

Naturals vs Synthetics in Perfumery

The thing I most often hear from people is that they hate synthetic fragrances and only like natural ingredients – this is followed by a description of their favourites which nine times out of ten are full of non natural materials. It’s not the fault of the consumer but the fact that marketing has really confused our noses and minds to the point that we no longer really know what natural smells like.

I get a lot of questions around the topic of how to dilute materials before use when making perfume so I thought I’d dedicate a blog post to the topic. It this article I cover all the aspects of diluting. When to dilute, why we dilute and what other diluents you can use when making your perfume other than perfumers alcohol.

I always get asked lots of questions about the terms Top, Mid and Base notes in perfumery as they cause a lot of confusion in modern perfumery. It was much simpler in the old days when perfumers were creating in a classic pyramid structure and not using the vast quantities of “linear” aroma chemicals they do today. In today’s post I’m going to demystify that a bit

I often get emails from prospective students saying “I want to take a perfume class, but I don’t know which one to choose”. It is often hard to advise without knowing your circumstances, experience level or what and why you want to learn about perfumery. This post aims to give you the ins and outs of the different perfume classes and courses I offer so you can pick the best option for you.